Natural Treatments for Cellulitis

Cellulitis is a dangerous, bacterial skin infection that can be treated with home remedies, but must be treated as quickly as possible. Some of the best home cures for cellulitis are natural antibacterials, such as garlic, colloidal silver and tea tree oil. Look in the Table of Contents on the right hand side of this page to discover many other natural remedies for cellulitis that have been recommended by Earth Clinic readers. One mother describes how she successfully treated her son with a home remedy treatment regimen, including turmeric, black salve and tea tree oil, avoiding antibiotics and hospitalization.

Natural Treatments for Cellulitis

Cellulitis is an aggressive condition that can cause additional complications if left untreated. If the infection appears to be spreading, consult a medical practitioner before it gets into the lymph nodes or bloodstream. Although this rarely happens, this could result in blood or bone infections or even gangrene. Fortunately, natural treatments are often effective, especially if the treatment regimen combines both internal and external treatment.

Garlic

Garlic is the favorite home remedy of many because it attacks bacteria, fungi and viruses without killing beneficial gut flora. Raw garlic is most effective.

3-4 cloves a day for several weeks was the amount that helped some people. Drinking milk afterward may help to kill the taste and smell if it bothers you.

Garlic capsules are widely available but we do not have any information as to how effective they are for cellulitis.

Colloidal Silver and Serrapeptase

Colloidal silver is relied upon by Earth Clinic readers to treat a wide variety of ailments. Colloidal silver can be inhaled, taken internally or used topically. For topical use, mix with 20% DMSO as a solvent and carrier. An interesting article on colloidal silver by Dave Thomas is found here.

One reader reported that she completely healed her leg ulcer, for the first time ever, with colloidal silver and serrapeptase. Here is what she said:

"Have discovered and used both colloidal silver, internally, 2 teaspoons, plus cleaned wounds externally for leg ulcers with colloidal silver spray for no infection successfully. Plus, then I take Serrapeptase around minimum of 80,000 per day. After one month the ulcers were closed, clean, and gone."

Tea Tree Oil

Tea Tree Oil is a powerful antimicrobial that has been used by native Australians for a very long time. (It has no relationship to the tea we drink.) Use sparingly as it is potent.

A mother whose 9 year old son developed cellulitis for the second time in a year could not fill an antibiotic prescription until morning, so treated him with tea tree oil instead. She described her treatment regimen as follows:

"My 9 year old son experienced cellulitis for the second time in less than a year as the result of a bug bite (spiders we think). At any rate, unable to get the prescription for an antibiotic filled until the morning, I went to this website. I placed a few drops of tea tree oil onto a cotton swab. I applied it to his very swollen and inflamed leg, along with a water soaked cotton ball (so the tea tree would not burn). I then applied an ice pack and gave him an over the counter anti-inflammatory. By morning, the inflammation was gone, he was able to move his leg with less diffulty and the redness also subsided. The Tea Tree worked awesome. Because of the severity of his cellulitis I still gave him the antibiotic, but cut the treatment time in half. Going forward, on any bites I will immediately treat with tea tree oil."

What Is Cellulitis?

Cellulitis usually appears on the legs as a painful, red, swollen area that may feel hot to the touch, but can appear elsewhere on the body. The infection can spread to the lymph nodes and into the blood, becoming life-threatening if left untreated. In this case, pain can be considered a good warning signal of danger as it forces most people to seek treatment options.

The bacteria that usually cause cellulitis are Streptococcus pyogenes and Staphyloccus aureus. Typically, surgical sites, cuts, puncture wounds, ulcers, athlete’s foot and dermatitis are the prime locations of bacterial entrance; however, certain types of spider and insect bites can also transfer the bacteria that triggers an infection.

Normally, the skin acts as a barrier, preventing infectious agents from entering our bodies. When the skin is broken, bacteria are able to enter into the body. This is one reason why it is always a good idea to keep any wound clean and covered if it breaks the skin. People with diabetes, a suppressed immune system or at risk of forming blood clotsare more prone to cellulitis.

Treating cellulitis as soon as possible is critical to success. Cellulitis can be very stubborn and it seems that the longer the infection has been in the body, the more difficult it is to heal.

Continue reading below for more natural remedies from Earth Clinic readers! Please let us know what remedies you have used to treat cellulitis and the dosage and any other details that might prove helpful to someone else. Thank you!

Bee Propolis

Hello. Two of my daughters used to get cellulitis frequently after a bee sting or even a mosquito bite. I was always running to the doctors for antibiotics to get rid of it. Now, the anitbiotics DID work, however after one summer with seven (yes, 7! ) anitbiotics, I decided there had to be something better out there! My husband happens to be a bee keeper, and he had heard of propolis (the "glue" the bees make from pollen and tree sap to fix and repair) and what a great natural antibiotic it is. It is an antifungal, antimicrobial, antibiotic, and about 5 other antis. (Forgive me for not overtyping, I haven't even finished my whole cup of morning coffee yet.) Long story short: We've started using propolis (be sure to get capsules or powder with no added stuff like zinc. Just propolis and the stearate used for preserving it's integrity. ) and have not been back for antibiotics once since! We use it to treat as soon as a sign of a cold, illness, or infection is coming on, and it gets it everytime! We've used propolis traps in our hives to naturally gather it, but it is incredibly hard to chew and swallow, because of it's stickiness. Amazing stuff. Simply amazing stuff!

I have suffered cellulitis for over 3 years now, consultant has stated that there is no permanant cure, and has put me on antibiotics, Penicillin VK, for the forseeable. I am interested in trying other treatments, and wondered, how much or what dosage of Propolis have you taken, and how long was it before you noticed a significant change.

Reply to Gillian
Blackpool:
Hi Gillian, unfortunately people rarely remember to list the "doses" that they use and often forget to even mention whether something is used externally or internally (when it might not always be obvious and could be used either way). And it's very rare that people follow their own comments or check back to see if anyone has asked questions about their suggestion. And by the way, I don't mean to sound critical of others. When you're the poster, things often sound obvious to you because it was your experience, but it's just not obvious to others reading your post ...

So ... that being said, I would assume that you can purchase the bee propolis she refers to in your local health food store/vitamin store and I would start by taking the recommended dosage on the bottle. Also, when you purchase the product, be sure to talk to the store clerk! They are often a HUGE wealth of knowledge! They may well be able to tell you how much you can safely take above the bottles "recommended dosage". I can almost guarantee that you won't be the first person to come in for the propolis for the purpose of treating cellulitis! If you are, I would be very surprised! Also, I would try going to a Whole Foods Market before I went to a "regular" vitamin store (assuming you have one in your area).

My daughter is currently dealing with her second bout with cellulitis. The first one was several months ago. That's why I came here to the Earth Clinic site. I wanted to see what was suggested here for a natural remedy. She has her FOURTH back surgery coming up the end of April for severe scoliosis. But if she has even a HINT of cellulitis, the surgeon would of course post-pone her surgery. which would create a problem for my daughter.

Anyway, I hope this is helpful to you and I wish you the best of luck!

Hi, I wanted to share that you can easily make propolis tincture. Just let the propolis sit in alcohol for a couple of weeks. It will dissolve and keep fresh. It is an amazing medicine. Use it straight, by the dropperful, or add to water or juice.

Thank you for posting the bee treatment, I'm going to check into it, it sounds amazing. I just want to point out in the story above, the woman says, "Because of the severity of his cellulitis I still gave him the antibiotic, BUT CUT THE TREATMENT TIME IN HALF...." It is extremely dangerous to start antibiotics and not finish all of them. This is because the antibiotics in less than the full course won't kill all the bacteria. The surviving bacteria are then immune to that antibiotic and all their descendants are immune as well. This plays a big part in creating the "superbugs" we see now that are very resistant to treatment. This puts all of us at risk. IF YOU START ANTIBIOTICS, FINISH ALL OF THEM!

Borax

Posted by Jenn (Cobbora, Australia) on 12/16/2014

Cellulitis..who has heard of it? Have done lots of research on the internet and have tried some seemingly 'great ' cures, but to no avail.......

Things like packing Chamomile flowers into leg ulcers and covering overnight may look good on posts but really is so impractical, because it hurts so badly that I had to wash it off immediately.. Honey is also very good..Manuka is said to be the best but I use raw honey anyway so I used this...it apparently works from beneath the ulcer and contains an enzyme similar in structure to hydrogen peroxide...and it also burns ..Not literally of course but is very painful for the first few days but it does work. I used it when my ulcers were very small and I didn't realise that the bandage/covering has to be left on for at least a week. After 3 days when it no longer was painful I took the bandage off and it was good for quite some time. It isn't practical to use on bigger ulcerated areas which is why I haven't done it again. Since that time I have been on 3 different lots of antibiotics to kill the culture. I'm allergic to Penicillan so there are limited choices on what to take. Leg ulcers are a secondary consequence of having Cellulitis, and this was told to me by a Professor who specialises in this field.When I was first diagnosed with this I had no idea what it was and I think a lot of doctors don't know either!

Before 2010 I was fairly healthy, slightly overweight, working 2 jobs, up to 12 hours a day and doing lots of volunteer work. These days I am a social hermit.

I had a workplace injury where I'd a sprain on my ankle but apart from Panadol Osteo very occasionally, the pain was quite manageable. Because of my injury I was pushed for months to have an operation to fix my ankle but I resisted for a long time because I heal very slowly, and the only dissenting voice advising me to not have this op was my podiatrist..In retrospect I should have listened to her.

Since my op, I have had months of antibiotics and some real horrible treatments by so called professionals, but also some excellent advice from health professionals in areas other than where I live. The pharmaceutical companies desire to keep you in the medical system for a long time. I had been told that people like me can be taking antibiotics for up to 20 yrs. I said no way and have been searching for solutions ever since.

I started taking Quercetin with Bromelain, 2 x 1000mg of Vit C, 1 x 5,000mcg Biotin, Kyolic Garlic, Calcium; Magnesium and Zinc ; in a supplement, and lately, Inner Health Plus, a Probiotic : 1 capsule daily 2-3 hours after my last antibiotic of an evening. Plus I drink on average about 2 litres of cold water a day and have just started taking Selenium 200 mg with Vit A, E and C.

I also change my own dressings because I need to shower more often than what is recommended. 6 months ago I started soaking my leg in warm water and about half a teaspoon of Dettol and I do this twice a day and this has helped quite well. I was told to use Bactigras medicated gauze dressings (10x10 cms) ( Jelonet is a cheaper alternative to this and all these, plus my own bandages, much much cheaper than buying retail are available through Medshop..Smith and Nephew in Victoria) Put a smear of Flamizene ( a silver ointment used for burns) on top of the gauze and cover with a dressing and bandage. For quite awhile this was very effective but now the Flamizene burns my skin too as it has become very sensitized to all the creams etc..so for the past 3 weeks I have been dressing it with Lucas Paw Paw ointment.and a new antibiotic. Outwardly my leg is healing wonderfully but underneath is the same old story.

After reading about Borax I have been looking at it as a possible (?) cure because what I have is a viral infection in my blood, and NOTHING I have tried so far has even looked like fixing it. With my supplements, I bought the highest quality ones that were available, some from Australia, the UK and the USA, so that what I was taking were the best and I suppose I'll have to take them for a long time to see some results. In the meantime though I need to tackle the issue of the hard multiple blisters under my skin, that continually create new ulcers on my leg, so I need to ask, has anyone here used Borax for stubborn infections .and/or leg ulcers ?? Hovex is now called Bare Essentials so I would like to attempt this to see if it will dry these little nodules up and delete them forever..

Having been taking these now for quite a few months I stopped taking the Quertetin and cut back my Vit C to 1 a day because my skin on my leg was healing so well that the itch was almost manic! But whilst it was healing on top, the Cellulitis " blisters" under my skin were still there and would re-erupt within a few days and we'd do the whole process again. So far I have had my hopes dashed easily 6 times.

Twice in the last 15 months my body has shut down because of the antibiotics, the latest one was whilst taking Cleocin : 150mg 6 times daily. This capsule was great in that it didn't make me sick, or bleed but my body couldn't cope with the overload. 28,800mg per month! No wonder there are so many "sick" people out there.

So I was doing some more research last week on trace elements etc and came across some articles on Borax..so I need to know who can help me ?

Hi Jenn, Celluitis is caused by the bacteria staphylococcus aureus and mrsa is methicillin resistant staphyloccus aureus. Colloidal silver works for both of these so it would be worth looking into it. Internally and externally.

I have no experience in using borax for infections because colloidal silver has always worked for us. Ours is homemade and when its to be used externally we make it stronger. Borax should still be helpful so l hope someone has an answer for you. Cellulitis is happening too often after knee operations so it does not surprise me that you got yours after an ankle opperation. I remember the days when staph was only in some city hospitals and patients transfered to a hospital without staph were barrier nursed till tests showed they were negative. Now its everywhere. All the best in your journey to health, God bless

Clay, Supplements

I ate some bad chicken breast and got very sick. A few weeks after this my cat scratched me on the leg while I was trying to get him out of the house because of a fire. A month later I began getting strong flu like systems and I noticed on my leg that the area where the cat scratched me had become a big red infected gash. I went to an emergency clinic and was told it was cellulitis. I went on 24 days of antibiotics but stopped after I started losing my hearing. By this time the gash was pretty much healed over but was red and inflammed underneath. The flu symptoms are gone and I am pretty normal except for the red gash on my upper leg. I have tried numerous natural solutions but am currently using a daily pascalite (calcium bentonite) clay internally 3x a day and a cilantro drink 2x a day to cleanse my system.

I found that Epsom salt solution also helps retard the infection topically. I've only used the clay for a week and the infection has definitely decreased. I'm just going to stick with this because I am noticing other minor healing signs as well. It is my conviction that the cellulitis is an internal problem and has to be treated both internally and externally. I think restoring health to the gut is always an essential and I am working on that as well. The clay has enabled me to sleep through most of the night. I normally take Coral Calcium and a methylated B complex to boost my system and immediate feel the lack if I miss a dosage. But with the clay I forget sometimes to take these pills because it seems to be keeping my body stronger. Hope this helps somebody. Thanks for all the good information everyone has contributed.

Hi Sherri, I know this isn't really regarding your post but as a cat owner of three cats I thought I would put my three cents in. I'm always getting bitten or scratched by one of my cats and have never in ten years gotten an infection. Even when my daughter was little and was bitten, and scratched a lot neither of ever had to go to the doctor. What I do is as soon as it happens (now only a few times a year) I put undiluted peroxide on a cotton ball and apply it to the injury, and no swelling or infection has ever occurred. I know we are always told to dilute h2o2 but it has worked for me for ten years and counting with no problems. :)

This is an update on what I am doing to beat the cellulitis. I have tried many of the recommendations on this site and am continuing to experiment with them. But so far I have found raw garlic cloves head and tails above anything I have tried. I left chopped garlic paste over the open wound and bandaged it up. I left it on several hours. (I do not recommend using garlic on the wound directly if the wound is sore and tender to touch. I my case there was no pain just a chronic low-level inflammation.) The wound started oozing and became inflamed and a scab formed. It has definitely also decreased my over-all body symptoms dramatically. I stopped putting the cloves directly on it because of the irritation and am now using olive oil with a little garlic infused in it. Instead I am taking the chopped garlic cloves soaked in Braggs apple cider vinegar internally after each meal. But my experience with using it topically has convinced me that the garlic kills the infection better than anything else I have tried. I continue to detox using clay, cilantro, etc. and now have added curcumin extract. Will let you know how I make out.

The cellulitis on my leg is almost gone! I am in shock over how fast it is recovering. I am still doing general detox remedies as well as the garlic as posted earlier but am taking 2 tsp. of amla with water after my meals. I did this initially simply to boost my vitamin C levels naturally so I could stop taking so much Ester-C. Well from the very first dose it started healing my leg. I could also feel activity going on in my lower intestines. It has only been 3 days on the amla and the cellulitis is almost healed! I would give it another 3 days and I expect it will be completely gone. If not, I will let you know. I don't know how it works, but I believe God's grace led me to it. It is Indian gooseberry -Amla organic powder about $20 a lb. Just warning you it tastes terrible - like sour dirt!

I plan on continuing it for a long time and to reduce the levels I am now taking. Right now I am taking 6-8 tsp. daily with meals. Right before I notice the most improvement I get very sleepy and a little dehydrated. I think this is because my body is detoxing. I have learned the hard way that when you body shows signs of dehydration (dry mouth) you must supplement with a natural salt as well as water. It is counterintuitive to think that you need salt when you are dehydrated but in Oct 2013 my salt levels plummeted and I had to be hospitalized. So now I have learned to take salt if I show signs of dehydration - but not iodized salt - it is toxic. (I also learned this the hard way.)

Of course if you are detoxing too fast you can lessen the amount of the supplement to slow things down. I may be taking a lot of Amla but I feel normal except for a little dehydration and sleepiness at night. All I know is that it is working. I will probably reduce the amount of Amla soon and I will eventually go down to 1-3 tsp a day for maintenance. I have a feeling the Amla is healing much more than only the cellulitis. I want to keep taking it for a long time to see if it addresses other health problems. If you are very sick don't give up, it may take months for your body to heal, even with the Amla. The cellulitis on my leg was about the size of a Tablespoon and has been there only about 6 months. Once you start taking the Amla it should be obvious that it is working though. This is what I have learned from my experience.

Diane- I am taking 8-10 teaspoons of amla a day now. I found that after 6 days almost all of the cellulitis blemishes were gone - except one. One blemish about the size of a fingertip is still there. I decided to take 8-10 tsp. because after observation I felt that my body needed that much. (Amla is a food powder so if your body is sick of it don't force it.) I found that I needed 2 tsp. after each meal during the day; and at night when I wake up in pain or discomfort I take 2 more tsp. and go back to bed. (Most nights I wake up two times.) I take the amla right before my meals. (I believe it is also high in enzymes.)

I think that the resistant blemish is correlated to a possible basal cancer growth on my face. (When I use silver to clean the leg blemish, the growth on my face also responds) I obviously have much more than cellulitis wrong with my body so I probably will be on a higher dose of the amla longer than expected. I am now putting the amla on the facial growth as a paste to see if that speeds up healing both my leg and my face. I believe that both infections are actually stemming from an infection in my intestines and this is why they are connected.

Many times during these 12 days that I have been on the amla drink I have experienced the Herxheimer Reaction and questioned whether I was hurting my body by taking so much. But because the blemishes continued to heal and my body got stronger and stronger I continued. In my case, this was the correct call because often I would get tired and have symptoms right before significant progress was acquired. So I think the symptoms were only because my body was detoxing. Listen to your body; it really will help you know if you are going in the right direction. Don't force anything and use common sense.

When I used the amla on the last blemish that would not disappear it made it worse so I discontinued the paste after a couple of days. And I am not taking the amla internally anymore either because the cellulitis is gone and what is left does not seem to be helped by the amla anymore. What is left on my leg is something else (which I believe had originated from the tenus vaccine interacting with the cellulitis). I am going to go to the doctors to have them remove it.

Sherri, I have to thank you personally for mentioning this supplement, which I have never heard of before today. I just went over to Amazon and bought some and am eager to try it, as I have a gross huge ugly cellulitus lesion on my calf.

I finally went to the doctor and got an antibiotic because nothing I was doing seemed to be working well enough and I am exhausted from not being able to sleep etc etc. You know the story.

Coconut Oil

First just want to say I am 22 years old when I was 6 months pregnant I got bit by a bug then a blister formed. And while I was working at my nursing home because I am a certified nursing assistant (cna) the blister popped. And the cellulitis started and I've had this infection ever since and every time I'm working I'm always on my feet so I get blisters on the same toe and my cellulitis starts and it's very painful. The worse my cellulitis has gotten my leg was inflamed up to my knee, and my limp nodes were swollen. I had to stay at Nortons hospital for a week dealing with this painful infection. Every time the doctors wanted me to stand up I would cry so hard and had to have help from the nurses, to lean on them because I couldn't move. I have cried myself to sleep praying this infection would go away but I learned I'm stuck with it the rest of my life. I have went to the doctors 7 times since I got pregnant within this year and my son is 1 year old now. I have tried every antibiotic the doctor has given me and nothing has helped but I recently heard of coconut oil helping. I just started using it last month. I love it so much but since I'm a cna I can't escape being on my feet and dealing with the blisters. I'm so glad I found this site and seeing everyone find these remedies helping I heard tea tree helps with the coconut oil. I will say I don't want any more antibiotics from the doctors they say it helps and then I get discouraged because it doesn't.

I've only experienced cellulitis when it goes directly in my bloodstream. Each time I've gone to bed feeling absolutely fine, and wake up with shivers and a fever. I end up in ICU for the first part of my stay...have gone home with a pic line, to continue out patient antibiotic treatments. I don't get any warning signs at all. I have pigmentation on my lower leg, the one place it has shown up on my body. I had surgery on my the same ankle about 8 years ago. I also have a problem with the same foot, with dry cracked skin. I'm at a loss, this is so scary and extremely painful, as of course anyone who's had it knows. If anyone has any ideas, I'd appreciate hearing them. This site is great, very helpful. I'm taking Tumeric, Coconut oil, using fresh lemons in my water. And only drinking water and no sugar added juices.

Please take a look at the "Recent Post" I put up to "Johanneinsc" just below this one. In a case of a skin issue, I'm all for using Echinacea first topically if this were me. Then I'd go to combo Colloidal Silver and DMSO, fifty-fifty topical applications. Both I'd do five days with aps three times or so daily ... for five days each. And...I'd drink both the Echinacea in glass of water (five drops) three times daily for a month and at different times of day drink CS (a tablespoon or more) three times daily. Separate the CS and Echinacea by an hour. The CS I'd take for six months at least. Probably a year.

Everyone please do some research on manuka honey for cellulitis or ANY type of wound care needed. you MUST buy a 16+ factor or higher to do the work you want it to do. it has helped so many and kept a friends mother from having a limb from being amputated. They are using it now it our hospital for wound care thanks to this same lady who was saved from loosing a limb. Manuka honey is also used for many other problems as well. it is sooo useful for so many different aliments. you can purchase this product at most vitamin shops and also Wegmans grocery store where you find the natural cure remedies. I think you will be very happy with this product!

Extra Virgin Coconut Oil can be used orally and topically. When I have used it for infection, we use 1 Tablespoon three times a day.

You might also consider turmeric - 1 teaspoon three times a day as well. Taking it at the same time as the coconut oil would be best, and adding a litle black pepper if possible. It increases its effectiveness.

Both coconut oil and turmeric together are excellent. Extra vitamin C may also be helpful.

Have discovered and used both colloidal silver, internally, 2tspns, plus cleaned wounds externally for leg ulcers with colloidal silver spray for no infection successfully. Plus, then take Serrapeptase around minimum of 80,000 per day. After one month the ulcers were closed, clean, and gone.

Thanks for everyone giving the health items that they use. Invaluable help.

The above colloidal silver and serrapeptase is the first time I completely cleaned up the ulcer on leg!!

I am at this time still continuing with colloidal silver and the serrapeptase.

I must say that I really admire you and envy you your knowledge. Your children have wonderful mother and I'm sure that with such care they will live very long in excellent health. I'm wondering if you consult your prescriptions with some naturopath or you have such an amazing intuition what to apply and take in some particular medical problem/case/ailment...

You are very encouraging and kind. I am really blessed with great kids and also lots of natural health resources, especially Earth Clinic! :)

When I was a girl, I used to hang out in the kitchen and watch my mother cook. She would let me stir or get out ingredients, etc. I remember marveling that she never needed recipes and yet she was such a great cook! When I first got married I had to use a recipe for everything. Now, 25 plus years later, I do a ton of cooking without recipes. Because you really do get a "feel" for things.

It didn't occur to me that herbs would be the same way. I remember buying some herbs in bulk because I wanted to try them out. It was so dreadfully intimidating and I had no idea what to use for what or how much or how often.....

But it ended up working out a lot like cooking. I got more and more comfortable with different herbs. Just like I now know that I want to include basil when I make Italian food, I know know that I want to include turmeric when I am dealing with inflammation.

I do have a number of books I consult for dosing information. Practical Herbalism is a favorite of mine for that. And I do seek the "wisdom that is from above." (Js 3:17) Because natural medicine is so fascinating to me I have read and read and read, too. For me, reading about how a natural remedy helped relieve someone's suffering is like hearing a bedtime story with a happy ending!

I have learned so many things reading posts on Earth Clinic. It is a fascinating collection of information from lay people. It is neat to see people post questions and over time they end up posting answers to other peoples' questions based on what they have learned. It is empowering to be able to take responsibility for your health, even if in small ways at first.

I just had such intuition that you live in a close contact with nature wandering through forests and fields and picking up plants in order to make some preparations from them. My intuition turned to be correct. Some time ago I had a possibility of buying very interesting book about herbs but unfortunately I thought that those prescriptions can be found by me in other books which turned to be untrue and now I have difficulties in finding this book again. I think that your knowledge about herbalism is built in in your genes I would say because your upbringing was rural as I guess? We, people from big cities are toomuch restrained by fear that herbs will tend to be inefffective or too weak so we are more prone to intoxicate ourselves with bigpharma products. Have you ever used antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals or just some natural products? What is your opinion about vaccinations especially for children? I'm also wondering whether you produce your own cosmetics? Your complexion and hair are very healthy. Do you have your own canal on YT? And last question: are you an Amish? (I hope this question is not too personal). Best regards, Agnes.

Well, I absolutely love to walk in the woods (or anywhere in nature) and do this as able. Fall is around the corner-I try to walk most days when the weather is not extreme. But mostly I just enjoy the flowers, trees, clouds, sky, birds, and ocassionally a wild turkey or deer. Most of the herbs that I use are ones that I buy in bulk. I do finally have a couple of wonderful comfrey plants growing near my house and I have wildharvested burdock, plantain, and jewelweed. But it has all been one step at a time. I would never want someone to be discouraged that they "can't do herbal medicine" because they cannot collect or grow it themselves.

I really admire Mmsg on this forum, growing things on the balcony of her apartment. I would like to see natural remedies available to anyone who wants them. Most people can grow an aloe plant on a window sill and it has many applications. Many people can buy a bag of turmeric or cayenne pepper at a local market of some sort. There much healing benefit to be had from such! (But you are correct that it is common to doubt that a plant would be very helpful. I definitely had no idea how healing plant medicine could be! )

My hobby of nautural medicine is one that has turned out to be useful for my family. I could probably enjoy searching the globe for useful medicinal plants, but alas, I have many more interests than time to pursue them, as most people do. :)

I actually grew up in the suburbs and rarely used anything "natural." Even now, I do use over the counter or prescriptions for my family, once in a while, if it seems to be the best thing. I have been grateful for some good doctors for emergency situations over the years. But year by year we have learned and applied more natural things to our lives, and it so so satisfying to have safe, simple, inexpensive options.

While we do live on a small farm, we are not living "off the grid" or anything. If my family had to live off what we grow, we would be long dead. :) I hope to empower my children to take responsibility for their health and nutrition and at the same time be grateful for what they have whether it is home grown or from the store, an herb from the woods or a medicine from the doctor. I am not Amish, though have some Amish families that live not to far from us and we admire their resourcefulness and productivity!

I haven't worn make up regularly in decades (its just not my style)...but I am quite intrigued by the creating of make up. I have a friend that has done so and it is probably something I would have fun researching and doing if I had the time.

So here a little, there a little and we each learn a little more each day!

Colloidal Silver

Posted by Jenn (Cobbora, Australia) on 01/22/2015

For all those people who have used Colloidal Silver for Cellulitis, I need some advice please!

For the first 6 days on CS my leg improved far beyond anything I could ever imagine, but now although it has shrunk to roughly palm-sized, I seem to have a little hotbed of infection that keeps repopulating with that biofilm gunk and my ulcers just will not shrink any further. I have no doubt that the CS will kill everything eventually..question is though, how much longer can I let the generator go on for to make a stronger mix ? I'm using one of those sort of square-shaped Maxwell House Coffee jars, because it is the biggest jar I have. (500 gr net) so it makes nearly 2 litres of CS..

I'm drinking 750mls over a 24 hour period with water that is slightly yellow.. but today I bought a nappy bucket ( with a lid) and want to know if I made enough CS to cover my ulcers, does it have to be changed daily, or can I leave my lower leg to soak in it for an hour or so at a time ?, then when should I change the water ? Every 2 days or what ?

I have ordered a water meter but won't get it for another week or so, so at the moment I am guessing that it is definitely stronger than the 30ppm, which was clear, bought from the health food shop, just because it is slightly cloudy, depending on whether I use distilled water or Nobles water. So I remember someone on here telling me I could go up to 500ppm to soak my leg in but then how long would you leave the generator on for to get that strength ? Should I buy another generator and have the 2 of them going simultaneously ? Sorry for so many questions but I would love to see this thing gone forever and know that it may take awhile to shift it from my body and I see tonight that I have a tiny blister at the back of my ankle which tells me I could have a new ulcer forming..God forbid I have enough CS in my body to kill any bacteria, and I know from past experience in the past 4 years that Cellulitis and it's partners are very aggressive..CS is my last hope. I mean it's not as if you can pick up the phone and ring someone about it but I need the wisdom of people on Earth Clinic who have beaten this thing..If there is something I can do differently or better please tell me about it. I'm open to any suggestions no matter how silly they may sound but if it worked for you perhaps it will work for me, too.

Thank you in advance for any assistance!!

To Dave, who mentioned about Echinachae drops..have had a lot of trouble trying to get them, but managed to buy powdered capsules...so when I have my protein smoothie of a morning I open 2 of them, and 1 x 1000mg Vit C capsule and add to my breakfast with 2 tablespoons of protein powder, a tray of ice cubes , some ginger and some milk of choice, mix in my blender for 2 mins and drink..

Have you looked at clay or ozonated oil (usually olive)? I'm not an expert on either one though I have used clay on my foot when I stepped on a nail. It's probably one of the first things I would use for an ulcer or infected wound. Clay is great for drawing things out of the body that don't belong. Since you're already making colloidal silver, you can hydrate clay with it to make it even more effective. I looked at the remedies page but didn't see anything on either of these so I'm going to give the links for two sites run by a gentleman whose email list I subscribe to. The first is about clay. While the second is largely about silver, it also has information on ozone. Just from a practical standpoint, the easiest way to use ozone would probably be to buy ozonated oil. I know I've seen more extensive information on ozonated oils but I can't find it right off hand. I did a quick search and included a link to a brief blog entry I found. Hope you find this useful.

I'm glad to hear of your immediate success. I'd said that if me I'd assume the infection was systemic and would be taking colloidal silver two or three times daily for about 6 months. The CS can also be applied topically as I previously discussed. I'd change the water daily. If me, I'd merely apply the CS mixed with 20 percent DMSO as a solvent and carrier...that applied with a white cloth to the infected area topically. I had recommended the Echinacea also as a topical bacterial killer.

Other things can be used to kill an infection topically. Tea Tree oil. Borax mixed in water and applied to the site might also act as an antibacterial. Maybe more effective than Colloidal Silver topically, would be a "Silver Nitrate" application....google "silver nitrate topical cream"...and you will find articles on how to use it topically. Encyclopedia Britanicca has a good Silver Nitrate article.

If you want a higher concentrate of CS just use less water in making the silver solution.

I would not drink that much concentrate...that high concentrate would be for topical use.

It has been awhile since I have posted but have tried wherever possible to put into practice what other posters have given me in the past... So here I am again seeking some help..

4 months ago my bite ( wolf spider) broke out in a painful ulcer, due in part to my immune system which doesn't work too good since I have been sick ( to counteract this I have taken large doses of Vit C, Oregano Oil, filtered water with a tad of ACV to alkaline my body, Kyolic garlic and Pau D'Arco., .. All over a period of 16 months) Then a month ago it got very very sore and horrible looking with lots of biofilm over it so I went to the doctor and she told me I had 2 very bad infections from swabs done way back in August ( so no one notified me?) MRSA and pseudomonas A and that I had to go straight to the hospital where they would put me into ICU for a few weeks..

So I went home and went up the next day, saw a doctor who advised me to go home and take Bactrim DS and use Fucidin Cream ( Fucidic acid ). This cream ranges in price up to $20 for 15 gr depending on where you get it., so I used it once a day instead of the recommended 3x.

Yesterday I had my long awaited appointment to see the specialist and he told me that the Bactrim is only for the MRSA and the recommended treatment for the rest is to be debrided under general anesthetic and have a vacuum put on my leg for a few months to assist the fluid. So has anyone had this done? It sounds painful.. He asked what I use on my legs and I told him I spray my legs with CS after I wash them because it takes the sting out. I wash my legs in separate buckets using either a small amount of Dettol disinfectant ( which kills the germs in the wash so I also use it as a final rinse when washing dressings etc) or I use a very weak solution, the horizontal length of Condy's Crystals on the edge of a matchstick. Any bigger amount and it really burns. Missionaries in tropical areas used to use Condy's Crystals for purifying water and to treat ALL infections.. However they didn't have superbugs in those days!

Anyway, sorry I have wandered... The Doc has been a specialist for 35 yrs and so he has kept an open mind on ulcers and CS. He advised me to use a stronger solution of CS between 16-30 ppm.. So I am onto my second lot of Bactrim 10 day treatment and my cellulitis ulcer on the other leg is nearly cleared up after 4 yrs.!! I'm also drinking a litre a day of filtered water with a teaspoon of ACV in it to make my body more alkaline.

So my question is this .... How long do you leave the generator on for to make a solution of say 20 ppm initially? I have a large Maxwell House coffee jar that holds just over a litre in solution when made. I also have a Silverwell machine so rather that guessing I'm asking for help based on those items used with Noble's water. A water meter that I bought from the U.S. and used very few times completely went haywire and never worked again... Sorry it's a bit all over the place but read it through and tell me what you reckon...

Colloidal Silver, Serrapeptase

Have discovered and used both colloidal silver, internally, 2 tspns, plus cleaned wounds externally for leg ulcers with colloidal silver spray for no infection successfully. Plus, then I take Serrapeptase around minimum of 80,000 per day. After one month the ulcers were closed, clean, and gone.

Thanks for everyone giving the health items that they use. Invaluable help.

The above colloidal silver and serrapeptase is the first time I completely cleaned up the ulcer on leg!!

I am at this time still continuing with colloidal silver and the serrapeptase.

Dietary Changes, Natural Remedies

I agree with so many of the people that have posted their stories about Cellulitis on this site. Earth Clinic is a wonderful site to help people get rid of Cellulitis without antibiotics, which are becoming a real problem with the overuse of them. The first time I had Cellulitis I had to go to the doctor because I did not have a clue what was wrong with my lower leg. It was very warm to the touch, painful, swollen, and red. Doc put me on antibiotics and it was gone. It is very important if you have it on the leg or arms to elevate your leg or arm higher than your heart.

Well little did I know that after I had it the first time I got it a second time very soon. The cause of it was that I have athletes foot/eczema on both feet. They are red on the soles and I am so sure it is the moccasin type because skin is thick, dry, and cracks so bacteria can get in. Prescription drugs, creams, etc. did not take care of my athlete's foot. I was at a dermatologist and my regular doctor. Dermatologist told me to buy over the counter athlete's foot cream and creams for the eczema after I was done with her prescription drugs. I did just that and nothing helped my feet. I have spent hundreds of dollars just trying to find something that works. Athletes foot is a known cause of Cellulitis.

In Dec 2013 by chance I stopped in at a holistic health center and with luck was able to talk to the main person there for 10 minutes and I told her my problem. She looked at my hands that have some eczema on, and in one second she said I can tell you right now that no creams will cure your foot problem because you have "CANDIDA" and that is causing your athletes foot and eczema.

She said no dairy, no sugars, and I must go gluten free. Well I started the diet half way till after Christmas was over. I went on the diet as strict as I could and my feet got better. She wants me to drink 3 quarts of water a day (room temp and put lemon slices in it) The day I went to see her in Dec I had cellulitis than, as I have it right now, but it is getting better. I am taking turmeric, Vitamin C, Echinacea, and garlic pills. I also put very warm water on my leg when taking a shower or I use washcloth that I run hot water on. I also have a stocking on now that is half way a compression stocking. I put tea tree oil on my leg with a cotton swab. Now I have had cellulitis several times and got rid of it using these methods. I only had to use antibiotics the first time. I check my leg everyday and the minute I find a reddened sore spot I hit the Cellulitis treatment and I am able to get rid of it. If you have a bad case I would see your doctor because I have seen some pictures of really some bad looking open wounds on legs that have Cellulitis. You would need medical treatment then.

My feet are getting better and better, but I am not home free yet so I got a small crack in my foot and that is why the Cellulitis comes back. If I was totally and 100% strict on the diet maybe my athletes foot would be totally gone. I have had the problem for 3 years now so I can't expect it to be gone quickly. I understand it takes some people 6 months or more to get rid of the athletes foot. The last few days I have really been strict on the diet, and as a bonus I am losing weight. I am going to get rid of this pesty athletes foot/eczema one way or the other.

Two days ago my husband asked me if I ever tried glycerin to make my dry cracked feet softer and I said no. I read up on glycerin on the internet and went right out to buy some. I am soaking my feet now every day in ACV and then putting athletes foot cream and glycerin on. I only have been doing it for two days now so it is to soon to tell if it will help. Glycerin is good for many rashes.

For my Candida the gal has me taking Candex, 2 pills twice a day and a proboidic pill in the evening. My question is , will I ever get rid of the Candida? It all ties together with my athletes foot and Cellulitis. I bet your site has some goods posts on it, (Candida) which I will read tomorrow. I only found this wonderful site today.

Hope my post will help somebody suffering right now like I have been the last three years. And by the way, since I have Cellulitis right now I take the chair cushion from the living room and two other sturdy pillows under it to prop my leg every night when I sleep and it is amazing how use to it I am and can sleep very well. Good Luck

According to the folks at www.knowthecause.com oil of oregano is an excellent anti-fungal remedy. Pau D'Arco tea and carrots are also excellent anti-fungals. They also have a Phase 1 diet on the website that excludes fungal causing ingredients like yeast products, gluten products, sugar products, corn and mushrooms. The diet focuses on protein products, vegetables, nuts, sunflower seeds and grain products like millet and quinoa. Best wishes for a full recovery!

For your dry, cracked feet (NOT CELLULITIS)...if you soak them in warm water (to loosen the dry skin) and then 'scrub' them with a salt scrub or sugar scrub ('recipe' below), it helps to remove the layers of dead skin and expose the new cells below. Getting the 'dead skin' out of the way may help reduce the source of the fungus. If you soak and scrub your feet 2 - 3x a week...you'll be surprised at how easy this works. I'm a nurse and have used this on my clients with great success. (Get an ok from your doctor if you have any concerns)

Skin scrub recipe - take a cup of sugar or salt (see properties below) and mix with 1/4 - 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil to 'moisten'. Add 6- 12 drops of essential oils as needed (ex: tea tree and oregano for bacteria and fungus, geranium or lavender for other skin conditions) - store in a covered container or ziploc plastic bag. To use: soak feet, scoop a palmful of scrub in hands and scrub feet for a minute or two, focusing on calloused areas. Rinse well. Pat dry.

Salt is antibacterial and can be used for scrubs that are used to prevent or treat infected areas - just be mindful that the salt can burn cracked skin (simply rinse off any areas that begin to 'sting').

Olive oil is moisturizing and also antibacterial, and will help to hold the moisture in the skin following the 'scrub' - just be mindful of 'slippy feet' and put on socks.

You can add a few drops of tea tree or oregano oil to the scrub to help boost it's antifungal/antibacterial effect. There are other oils that would be beneficial, but start with one at a time, so you can learn what works best for YOUR condition. (This is a good way to learn how to eliminate it completely).

A sugar scrub does not burn, but can have the potential to exacerbate fungal infections. Just monitor how your body responds. Simply stop using it, if it makes it worse.

If you have issues with insomnia, you could try using sesame oil in the foot scrub and applying it before bed - using sesame oil in place of the olive oil would be a way to combine the scrub with an Ayurvedic treatment for insomnia (which consists of applying sesame oil to the soles of the feet). It won't have the same antibacterial properties as the olive oil, but has it's own qualities that can be utilized for healing.

Best of luck to you - I think you'll get the answer you seek - most of all, thank you for helping the rest of us in your search for that answer!

I applaud you all for trying to use natural remedies but please be careful. I did the same as you all and thought I had gotten rid of my cellulitus but had not. I am extremely overweight due to the steroids I take daily for my lung disease. My mobility is null so I sit a lot at my desk. I can not lay on my back to elevate my legs because I can not breathe so I can only prop my legs in a recliner with pillows off and on all day. I tried the natural way after the third time of breaking out with cellulitus and I made the problem worse. I also have edema in my lower body which after the blisters of the cellulitus break they turn into ulcers (which they did because I did not get the infection under control with antibiotics). I have severe pain, my legs are now discolored in a black hue from the damage to the skin. What you are all missing is if you have cellulitus more then once you can have a medical underlying problem. I get the cellulitus from the edema getting out of hand. It is not just from getting bitten from a bug. Please research some more and talk to a skin doctor before you do what I did and make it far worse then it could of been.

Kathy try using Alliderm gel. (I buy from Amazon.) I have dealt with eczema for at least 20 years. Sadly I am researching Cellulitis because of a comment from my masseuse, not one of the countless doctors or dermatologists I have seen. I have also had results from the Candida treatments. Hats off to you for being able to follow the diet!

Tinkerbell. It sounds like you need to get on oxygen and investigate the possibility of sleep apnea. Both factors are linked to assisting edema. I have seen the difference oxygen makes to quality of life and lower circulation. Niagara Therapy (Cycloid Vibration Therapy- CVT) massage mats make a good daily difference too. The other thing is lemon water. It's like a broom for your body. Best wishes. Jay in Oz

Just as an additional note, if you do have athlete's foot. My husband had it badly until we ran into work socks that have a silver fiber in them and they cleared his athlete's foot up. We were not expecting that, but that's what happened.

You can get rod of candida if you get serious about eating right. You will have a good clue that it is gone when your tongue no longer has a white coating, along with your other symptoms. Your gut contols about 80% of your health. You eat garbage and you won't be well.

Dietary Changes, Soap

For cellulitis, I began showering my body with Zest bar soap. I would leave the foam on the infected cellulitis areas for a few minutes, rinse and repeat five more times. This helped dry out the skin from the outside. I cut out all sugar from my diet. It FEEDS of sugar. You need to cut it out!! I mean everything including fruits, bread, pasta, starch vegetables everything!! Every morning I would drink a green smoothie consisting of red chard, spinach and dandelions. I also took two garlic capsules, B vitamin and folic acid capsules every day. Within 4 months my skin was healing and my body was EXPELLING the bacteria from my body!!! I have been suffering from this for 8 years and after so much trial and error I finally found my cure.

Don't Ignore Cellulitis

Posted by Darcee (Ocala, Fl) on 09/21/2014

I am on week 2 recovering from my first and hopefully last bout of cellulitis. My symptoms started with going to work on a Monday feeling great to feeling nauseated with severe chills by mid-day. I somewhat felt a slight irritation on my (R) ankle and thought I might have nicked myself shaving the day before - which I didn't remember doing. I applied triple antibiotic ointment and bandaid where ankle felt irritated in between being nauseated and collapsing on bed.

I developed 105+ fever. My husband kept me supplied with ginger ale, water and ice chips. He was concerned about the fever and wanted to take me to the hospital. I kept refusing thinking I just had a tummy bug and would feel better by the next day. I was up the entire night dealing with nasea and severe chills. I noticed that it became increasingly painful to walk everytime I had to walk to the washroom.

I managed to get an appointment with the clinic who took my temp (104.7) and saw my B/P was high and noted the red ring that developed around my ankle. They immediately sent me to the hospital due to temp, B/P and their diagnosis of cellulitis. I was triaged and admitted. I was immediately started on IV therapy... Vancomycin along with a few other switch ups along the way. I started getting visits from infectious disease specialists as well as a surgeon who was trying to determine if I had flesh eatting bacteria - at which point he would remove the skin from my leg.

Staff noted that from my first moment of admission to 40 mins into Emer Dept treatment the "rash" had spread quite a bit by then. That really got their attention... thus concern about flesh eatting bacteria and severity of illness. After first day it was determined that I had a severe case of cellulitis - that if I hadn't gotten treatment when I did my conditions would have been fatal within another 24 hrs. I was hospitalized for 5 days and discharged still with pain and swelling and on IV therapy every 12 hours along with a lidocaine patch for my leg.

I have finally had improvement with pain and swelling for the past 2 days. I am scheduled to stay on antibiotics through next Tuesday... making it a full 2 wks by then from hospitalization and start of IV therapy to end of IV therapy. The specialist informed me Thurs that I will most likely start on oral antibiotics at that time and hopefully be released to return to work on Weds.. I have been taking probiotics and consuming kefir smoothies and now researching homeopathic avenues to pursue. I will be researching recommended / suggested avenues of treatments and look forward to finding successful options that will work for me. I normally am anti - antibiotic - and avoid at all cost, but in this case... they saved my life. Cellulitis is not to be taken lightly is a valuable lesson I have learned.

I have cellulitis on my foot and hand. My foot was very red with fever. Now it is still swollen but the outside of the area is very dark brown and the center piece is black. Is this the healing process? I am soaking my foot and keeping it elevated. Please give advice. Thanks

Garlic

Dog bite & terrible infection wouldn't heal even after 6 days in hospital & on 3 antibiotics by IV.

At home, it took a month still on antibiotics, skin was literally rotting. Each day new rot would form under & around a 1/4 inch humongous scab. Smelled like green rotten meat. Cellulitus/staph arm 3 times swollen.

I minced a couple of cloves of garlic placed it on wound AND OVERNIGHT IT KILLED THE INFECTION NEXT DAY I KEPT PLACING FRESH MINCED GARLIC. KNOCKED IT ALL OUT!!!!!!!

U can place minced FRESH garlic any place on your body, open wound or not. It will absorb thru skin.

General Feedback

I suffer from recurrent cellulitis infections and 6 months back had found a cream that was highly recommended for cellulitis prevention and treatment on a more natural method. Does anyone know what this cream may be called or where I can find it? Thanks

The cream you may be talking about is Eumaid I believe. There is another one called Terrisal or something like that. I used the Eumaid and I can't say it works any better than the Tea Tree Oil or Coconut oil.

I have often wondered if it is really the cream and not the fact you are massaging. My experience confirmed it was the latter. My "Dolly Dimples" went away after daily rubbing the areas with a facecloth while in the shower. It was sure less expensive!

For those with deeply cracked heels, my suggestion is to use a pediegg or pumice stone to remove the heavy calluses that split. Then use Lantiseptic cream or ointment, and rub into heels and feet every morning and night. I have used this method for the past six months and my heels are smooth and healthy for the first time in over 30 years. My mother has cellulitis and uses Lantiseptic to help keep ulcers from forming on unbroken skin on her legs.

Multiple Remedies

CELLULITIS: I recently developed cellulitis in my feet and ankles for the second time in my life. The first time my ankles swelled up like an elephant's after my cousin's cat rubbed up against my bare legs and I went to the emergency room (I was only 23). They pumped me full of high dose IV antibiotics and after a few days it went away.

This last time I developed the same problem again 15 years later after rubbing a dog with my bare feet. My ankles again swelled up and I realized it was cellulitis exactly as I had years ago. This time, however, I didn't want to go through with the antibiotics again since the first time they messed up my digestion bad and it never fully recovered. So I tried to go the natural route with oral colloidal silver (1100ppm), GSE, olive leaf, etc. This seemed to keep it from spreading for a few days but it wouldn't heal. Then I got a colloidal silver topical first aid gel which you can buy in any Vitamin Shoppe or major vitamin webseller. I applied it, let it dry for a few hours, rinsed my feet off then applied it again, for a total of about 4x/day. The silver gel combined with the oral stuff reversed the infection on the tops of my feet and shins dramatically, but though it was receding it was very slow and stubborn in my ankles and heels.

So I began researching online again and found a medical paper from a hospital that showed that giving cellulitis patients 400mg of ibuprofen every 6 hours for 10 days together with antibiotics resulted in much faster healing than with antibiotics alone. I had my wife pick up a bottle of ibuprofen at the drug store and began taking it. By that night with the silver gel, oral silver, GSE, olive leaf, myrrh and a few other basic things (vit C, echinacea, etc.), the cellulitis was 80-90% gone. I also took proteolytic enzymes which may have helped too.

After the second full day of the above regimen, including the ibuprofen, the cellulitis was basically healed. Oh and one more crucial thing if you're dealing with cellulitis of the legs or feet: ELEVATE THEM!!! They will not heal if you don't keep them elevated, HIGH! I sat on a lounge chair with my feet high on the wall for almost three days straight. Take breaks and walk around every hour or so but try to keep them elevated for the whole day. Sounds crazy but I was not going to get those IV antibiotics which destroyed my gut again if I could help it.

July 04, 2018: I had a recurrence of the cellulitis and hit upon something that worked brilliantly: BETADINE. I applied straight Betadine to my feet and ankles with a cotton ball every few hours for a couple days and kept my feet elevated. Worked like a charm. I recommend trying Betadine as soon as the signs of cellulitis rear their head.

Thank you to everyone who has tried & had results, this site is a great help. I regularly fast, sometimes for days at a time, this has not helped, I have had this severe condition for 13 weeks and was getting worse to the point I couldn't walk on the foot at all, currently on cleocin antibiotics, from 1 every 4 hrs 2 wks ago upped to 2 tablets 3x a day, tea tree oil has halved the stinging burning pain that is worse than child birth. the only way to describe the pain is like being burnt badly while cooking 1st degree burn, that is the closest pain that comes close, followed by contractions in the area ( mine is in the little toe I cut nail too short)

I have changed my diet: Apple Cider Vinegar 2 tbl spoons in a glass of water I sip all day, & drink 2 ltrs or more of water room temp, Echinacea & berry tea & green tea. dandelion tea. Turmeric, Curcumin & black pepper about 2 tbl spoons of each & fresh garlic cloves I put all over my salad & I eat for lunch: tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber & carrots, capsicum, green apples for lunch with salad oil dressing to help spread the turmeric into every cell of my body and the bone marrow, I found having tomato on buttered (has oil in it) toast with pepper & turmeric helps the stinging/swelling calm down first thing in morning. I have tried sucking a raw young lemon or add to water also.

I'm on day 2 of this, and pain has halved, I can finally sleep with out being woken by crippling pain, and I can walk with out a cane. the toe is not dark purple now its going pink, red & skin colour, I wipe tea tree oil around the area not on the sore itself, as they removed the nail & sliced into area to squeeze out infection twice, it's covered all the time, dressing changed every 2 days. The antibiotic not working so I had to try everything I can find on the net & combine it into 1, I'm about to get the manuka honey to add this too. It's very slow healing but its progress considering what pain I'm in & keeping the toe.

I originally got Cellulitis in Dec 2014, since then I have had 4 flare ups. Dr's have given strong antibiotics for 20 days. It seemed to work, it has been 2 months and noticed redness starting along with pain. I do not want to use antibiotics any longer. I have used Tea tree oil, coconut oil, colloidal sprays etc. I am a diabetic, have gone through chemo, but why do I keep getting these flare ups? Please someone help me I am at my wits end